Posts

Six months ago I launched my Gitomer Certified Advisor program. It allows others in the coaching and training field to use my brand and sell my classroom training and my online platform along with their offerings – or by itself.

After a very successful (but limited) launch, I want to take the program to the next level and need to find interested and qualified people to do so.

THINK ABOUT YOU AS I TELL YOU ABOUT ME. Before I get into the strategy and actions I’m going to take, I want you to understand why I’m writing about the process. I want you to compare it to how you attract, how you prospect, and how you connect with willing buyers.

How do you get leads?

How do you prospects?

What is your strategy to socially involve and attract?

Is your personal platform strong enough to attract?

What is your social media lead-conversion rate?

The answers to these questions will significantly impact results.

BIG PICTURE: The strategy for this ‘attraction campaign’ is to use every form of social media and electronic outreach to find interested people, and offer them multiple ways to connect with me. The goal is to give information immediately without a barrier of registering or giving me their information. I want to get my messages BOTH responded to and passed along.

THE TARGETS: In order to get 1,000 leads, I am going to mass mail my contacts and connections AND specifically target existing coaches, existing sales trainers (corporate and independent), and anyone looking to start their own sales training business that wants to use the Jeffrey Gitomer brand to increase authenticity. As a Gitomer Certified Advisor, I provide them with the content, the brand, and the training to make it happen.

TIMED SOCIAL MESSAGES: Posting time and frequency are directly proportionate to the audience reached and their likelihood of response. From my personal experience, my social media consulting expert, Joe Soto, and the article, The Scientific Guide to Posting Tweets, Facebook Posts, Emails and Blogs at the Best Time in The Huffington Post, the best times to post on social media are as follows http://blog.bufferapp.com/best-time-to-tweet-post-to-facebook-send-emails-publish-blogposts:

Facebook. Best post times are between 1 pm and 3 pm Monday through Friday; engagement rates are 18 percent higher on Thursdays and Fridays.

Twitter. Tweet later in the day. Re-tweets on Twitter are higher at 5 pm compared to any other time during the day; the best times to post are between noon and 6 pm. This same study found that people are on Twitter 181 percent more during their commute. Think about it. Aren’t you more likely to be all about your life and how to improve it before or after work?

LinkedInThe Media Bistro suggests LinkedIn is most often used right before and after work hours (specifically on Tuesday and Thursday, but no one knows exactly (except maybe LinkedIn).

Blog readers read in the morning, with the ‘sweet spot’ being Thursdays around 11 am. But that’s a subjective opinion as well.

YouTube has no ‘best time.’ By comparison to others, its visitors are more search oriented, so I intend to be both searchable and findable. And my new video posts will go out to all my existing subscribers.

CRAP SHOOT REFINED: No one really knows. All messages are different, and all experts are flawed. (I’ve been proving that for years.) I believe that content is a bigger key than what time you post it. And key words will get you found. So that’s where I’m concentrating. I’m going out to my audience, and asking them to go out to their audience (re-tweet, repost, forward, like, comment, and anything else that spreads the word organically).

My overall goal is to generate at least 1,000 leads by May. You may think that is an aggressive goal, but highly achievable through social media and email. Generating 1,000 leads will create a pipeline that will lead me to one sale per day by June 2014.

And I am going to give you the complete detailed outreach plan for you to use as a guide to creating your own game plan for new leads – next week.

If you’d like to see the exact email and subject line I’m going to use, go to www.gitomer.com and enter the word ADVISOR in the GitBit box.

Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.

About the Author

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, Customer Satisfaction is Worthless Customer Loyalty is Priceless, The Little Red Book of Selling, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers, The Little Black Book of Connections, The Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude, The Little Green Book of Getting Your Way, The Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching, The Little Teal Book of Trust, The Little Book of Leadership, and Social BOOM! His website, www.gitomer.com, will lead you to more information about training and seminars, or email him personally at [email protected].

http://www.strategydriven.com/wp-content/uploads/JeffreyGitomer.jpg218156StrategyDrivenhttp://www.strategydriven.com/wp-content/uploads/SDELogo5-300x70-300x70.pngStrategyDriven2014-03-31 06:52:352016-08-08 15:39:07A game plan to generate a thousand social media leads.

Hello Mr. Gitomer, I read your article on LinkedIn in the Daily Herald Business Ledger here in the Chicago Suburbs. I am a fan. You make great points and observations that many people miss. I’m in the process of retooling my profile. I can’t help but to ask if you have ever made a sale through LinkedIn? Thanks, Kyle

The simple answer is YES. But it ain’t that simple.

I have a business brand, a personal brand, and a social brand. All of which are interconnected. All of which are mature. All of which provide value messages. All of which create attraction. All of which generate leads. All of which make sales.

MY MARKETING MANTRA IS THE CORE OF MY SOCIAL EFFORT: I put myself in front of people that can say ‘yes’ to me and I deliver value first.

Long before social media, or as I prefer to refer to it business social media, my marketing mantra was the hallmark of my sales success. As a writer and speaker in the early ’90s, I built my brand in print media and created attraction through value messaging. Still do.

It was hard to create attraction (leads and sales) if you weren’t in print.

The HUGE difference (and your advantage) is that now there are a variety of additional media and social media outlets available. Most of them are free. And you can become attractive on all of them, if you choose the right path.

The value messaging path.
The path that will attract the all-important CLICK.
CLICK means someone wants to see more.
Especially if they’re looking to buy or connect.

CLICK AROUND: There are very few ‘one source’ sales anymore. Too many options available. People, you included, click around before they connect, interact, and especially buy.

The omnipresence of mother Google, combined with the advent of business social media, has created new and better ways to search, find, connect, attract, and interact. And one social media outlet proves, promotes, and reinforces the other to someone that clicks around.

Everyone clicks around.

People searching do not just search one source. They keep searching until they find comfort enough to click, and click again in the same spot. And my value messages promote multiple clicks.

ONE CLICK MEANS NOTHING. One click means you get a ‘look.’ Two or more clicks on the same page or site gets a deeper look and maybe a connection. Especially in social media.

If I’m looking for someone or something, I click ALL their social media. Don’t you?

NUMBERS MATTER: The number of followers and connections you have can be the difference between click and no click. Your prospect is seeking some comfort and assurance that you are safe to connect with or do business with.

COMMENTS, RATINGS, RECOMMENDATIONS, AND ENDORSEMENTS MATTER MORE THAN NUMBERS: Especially in the business world. If you have 500 business connections on LinkedIn, it pales in comparison to who has recommended and endorsed you. Recommendations and endorsements are proof. So are positive ratings and comments. And many businesses live and die by them.

RULE OF THE MORE THE MORE: The more a prospective customer clicks on you and your stuff, the easier it is for them to make a buying decision in your favor. They are more likely to click if your site is easy to navigate, your information is easy to understand, there is clear value to the possible purchaser, and you offer social and video proof that others have purchased from you and love it.

FINAL POINT OF UNDERSTANDING: Building and growing your ‘attraction platform’ is not just about what you say, post, or do; it’s all about what OTHERS think of what you say, post, and do combined with what actions THEY take as a result of it.

Do they post a favorable a comment? Do they re-tweet to their followers? Do they share with their connections? Do they ‘like’ you or what you do? Will they subscribe? And (of course) will they buy?

Those are the actions I seek to achieve in those who click on me.

Am I perfect at it? Heck no.
Do I work on making it better every day? Heck yes!

“OK, SO DID YOU MAKE A LINKEDIN SALE?” No, I made hundreds of them. I have more than 15,000 connections on LinkedIn, and EVERY DAY I post a value message.

Here’s what happens: People comment, people share the post with THEIR connections, people email me, and people call our office. EVERY DAY. And whether they want a twenty-dollar book or a fifty-thousand-dollar training program, the cost of that lead (and that sale) was ZERO.

Understand it was a value message that created the attraction and the sale(s), not an ad or a self-promoting message. Yes, I send out an occasional sales offer, but it’s less that 10% of the time. No one is gonna re-post an ad.

Next week you’ll see the detail of what my social game plan is, how one element ties into and supports the other, and how that creates attraction that leads to sales.

Stay tuned…

Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.

About the Author

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, Customer Satisfaction is Worthless Customer Loyalty is Priceless, The Little Red Book of Selling, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers, The Little Black Book of Connections, The Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude, The Little Green Book of Getting Your Way, The Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching, The Little Teal Book of Trust, The Little Book of Leadership, and Social BOOM! His website, www.gitomer.com, will lead you to more information about training and seminars, or email him personally at [email protected].

http://www.strategydriven.com/wp-content/uploads/JeffreyGitomer.jpg218156StrategyDrivenhttp://www.strategydriven.com/wp-content/uploads/SDELogo5-300x70-300x70.pngStrategyDriven2013-06-17 06:07:012016-08-07 20:45:31How to make sales calls on social media. Kind of.

I am NOT a LinkedIn expert, but I do have more than 15,000 LinkedIn connections. Do you?

I may have more visibility and notoriety than you do, but we are equal in exposure and linking possibilities. And 98.5% of my LinkedIn connections are the result of people wanting to connect with me.

I do not accept everyone. I click on everyone’s profile before connection. Many are impressive. Most are average or less. Some are pathetic.

How’s yours? How many connections do you have? How are you communicating with your connections? How are your connections helping your sales or your career?

Your LinkedIn profile is one more social media image. And you choose exactly what it is. When others search for you on Google, LinkedIn is one of the first links they click on. You have a chance to make a positive business and social impression.

THE GOOD: When I realized the business significance of LinkedIn, I immediately sought professional help. I hired Joe Soto at One Social Media to help me with the keywords, layout, and what to include on my profile page. He also recommended what and how to post.

It must be working. In the two years since I hired him, I have added more than 9,000 organic connections. Or should I say, more than 9,000 potential customers. Huge opportunity. At an acquisition cost of ZERO.

REALITY OF LINKEDIN: I receive requests to link and I also get messages. Some are very nice, some are self-serving, some are insincere, and some are stupid (very stupid). And ALL messages are a reflection of the person sending them. That would be you.

Here are some THINGS about LinkedIn to make you think, re-think, and act:

Your picture is NOT an option. Show a professional, but approachable, image. Be proud of who you are.

Have a LinkedIn profile that gives me insight, not just history. Not just what you’ve done, but also who you are. Your profile is your pathway to connection.

DANGER: DO NOT USE stock LinkedIn messages. It shows your laziness, lack of creativity, and overall lack of professionalism. Standard LinkedIn messages need to be replaced with your own. EVERY TIME.

If you’re looking for a job, or working a lead, tell me WHY I should connect. (Where’s the value?)

If you’re looking for leads, use the keyword feature (rather than the job title option) in the ‘advanced search’ link to the right of the search box. It’s free, and you’ll find hundreds of people in your industry or in your backyard that you never knew existed.

• Why are sending me an e-card on Easter? I’m Jewish, not a good move. Three words to ask yourself with any message you send or post: WHERE’S THE VALUE? E-cards are a total waste, unless it’s family.

If you’re asking me to connect you with a 2nd level connection, DON’T. The only way to ask is from 1st to 1st. And tell me in a sentence or two WHY you want to connect.

Asking for a recommendation or endorsement is BAD. If you’re asking your connections for a recommendation: DON’T. It is perhaps the dumbest, rudest thing on LinkedIn. Think about it, you’re asking people to “please stop what you’re doing and tell me about ME.” Two words: GO AWAY. If you have to ask, it’s probably because you don’t deserve. Think about that.

Don’t tell me you “found something interesting” in your group message, especially if the link is to join your MLM down-line or attend your ‘free’ webinar.

Allocate 30-60 minutes a day to utilize this vital business social media asset.

THE BAD and THE UGLY: Here are some examples of MESSAGES and INVITES I have received on LinkedIn. Hopefully they’ll make you think, re-think, and act…

BAD: Hi Jeffrey, My name is — with —, a leading — provider that helps organizations connect with their customers through email, mobile, and social networks. I would like to connect about a potential partnership to help Buy Gitomer, Inc. increase their interactive marketing ROI.
This is a typical self-serving (and deleted) message. Why not give me a tip, and ask if I’d like more like it? And stop using dead sales words like ‘ROI,’ and ‘helps organizations.’ Help me, don’t sell me.

DUMB: Hi All, As I continue to work on building my network, can I ask that you do me a huge favor and endorse me here on LinkedIn? I would be more than happy to return the favor and endorse you as well. Thank you for your support! (name withheld to avoid public embarrassment)
Scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours. Give me a break. Spare me. Beg someone else.

BAD AND DUMB: I got this in my message box (I get a few like this every week)(subject line) Your Opinion please. (name withheld) Supplier Business Executive
If you’re hoping for an endorsement or a recommendation on LinkedIn, or anywhere, here’s the two-word mantra: EARN IT!

LinkedIn is the business social media site of today AND tomorrow. Harness its power, do notabuse its options, and you will reap its rewards.

Reprinted with permission from Jeffrey H. Gitomer and Buy Gitomer.

About the Author

Jeffrey Gitomer is the author of The Sales Bible, Customer Satisfaction is Worthless Customer Loyalty is Priceless, The Little Red Book of Selling, The Little Red Book of Sales Answers, The Little Black Book of Connections, The Little Gold Book of YES! Attitude, The Little Green Book of Getting Your Way, The Little Platinum Book of Cha-Ching, The Little Teal Book of Trust, The Little Book of Leadership, and Social BOOM! His website, www.gitomer.com, will lead you to more information about training and seminars, or email him personally at [email protected].

http://www.strategydriven.com/wp-content/uploads/JeffreyGitomer.jpg218156StrategyDrivenhttp://www.strategydriven.com/wp-content/uploads/SDELogo5-300x70-300x70.pngStrategyDriven2013-04-29 06:07:132016-08-07 21:25:23LinkedIn is great for business - er, I mean SMART business.

The Complete Idiot’s Guide to LinkedIn by Susan Gunelius provides step-by-step instructions for using the full array of interactive tools provided by the professionals’ social media website, LinkedIn. Some of the topics covered include:

Creating a personal profile that is more than an online resume

Developing a dynamic company profile

Establishing a LinkedIn Group and attracting and engagement members

Connecting and interacting with others on LinkedIn

Formulating and executing on a LinkedIn marketing plan

Susan’s book provides tips and tricks throughout her book to help the reader be even more effective in their use of LinkedIn.

Benefits of Using this Book

In today’s business world, an online presence is critically important for individuals and businesses. We believe all professionals should have a complete, up-to-date LinkedIn profile as a part of their outward personal brand. Likewise, companies have an opportunity to attract customers and talent through their LinkedIn profiles.

StrategyDriven Contributors like The Complete Idiot’s Guide to LinkedIn for its clear, easy-to-follow instructions for making effective use of LinkedIn. We find LinkedIn to be a powerful tool for professional interactions and have successfully employed Susan’s recommendations to enhance our interactions. In fact, StrategyDriven‘s Company Page was developed using Susan’s instructions and is enjoying an ever increasing number of weekly visitors.

The Complete Idiot’s Guide to LinkedIn can accelerate a professional’s and company’s efforts to establish a quality LinkedIn presence and effectively engage with others online; making it a StrategyDriven recommended read.

Final Thought…

LinkedIn recently changed some of its ‘look and feel’ with respect to its Company Profile pages. We’ve tested these and found that while the look has changed the functionality remains largely the same and The Complete Idiot’s Guide to LinkedIn continues to be a sound reference for this LinkedIn functionality.

On behalf of the StrategyDriven contributors and staff, I would like to invite you to join the StrategyDriven LinkedIn Networking Group!

In addition to the many benefits of LinkedIn membership (see the Tools for Professionals post, LinkedIn), members of the StrategyDriven LinkedIn Networking Group will have the opportunity to more easily communicate with other like-minded professionals seeking to create greater alignment and accountability within their organizations.

To join the StrategyDriven LinkedIn Networking Group, click here. LinkedIn members will be asked to “Sign-in and join this group” and non-members to “Join LinkedIn now.” Once you have accepted the invitation to join our networking group, a member of the StrategyDriven staff will approve your group membership and you will be LinkedIn!

As always, we hope you continue to enjoy the many quality principle, best practice, and warning flag posts found on the StrategyDriven website and that you’ll find membership in the StrategyDriven LinkedIn Networking Group to be of additional benefit to you and your organization.

Stay Connected

Sevian Business Programs

StrategyDriven’s line of Sevian Business Programs represents fully developed, immediately implementable, best practice programs based on our decades of business management and operations experience. Leaders implementing these programs gain access to the aggregate experience of dozens of leading companies without incurring the high costs of benchmarking, research, and development. Contact us now to learn more.